This invention relates to containers which may be readily constructed from or dismantled into a relatively flat rectangular sheet for economical storage when not being used as containers. These containers are generally regular polygonal in cross-section and tubular in shape. A most appropriate use is for the holding of coins in units used by the banks for "rolling", i.e., pennies or dimes in units of 50, nickels or quarters in units of 40. Of course, the use of these containers is not restricted to the holding of coins. Any other tubular article which needs packaging or protection in handling or shipping could be safely secured in one of these containers. In order to simplify the discussion of the use and construction of the container, and the sheets which are used to construct them, reference shall be made to the containers as coin holders.
Coin holders are presently known and are used by banking institutions throughout the world. Mostly, however, the holders used when coins are stored in manageable amounts are paper rolls with reinforced ends which are wrapped about the coins by machines. Even before these rolls, simple paper strips have been used to wrap the coins. The ends of the paper strips were folded against the ends of the rolled coins to keep them in place. More recently, as promotional gimmicks, some banks are dispensing plastic coin holders which are formed with a horseshoe cross-section out of a fairly thick rigid plastic.
The two types of paper rolls have several drawbacks. Neither roll is reuseable and therefore a new capital outlay is required every time the coins are to be rewrapped. The paper roll requiring the machine to roll the coins is unavailable for use to those without a proper machine. The other paper strips are generally clumsy to work with.
The plastic holders are reusable and can be used without the requirement or aid of a machine. They are expensive, though, as they must be sturdy enough to retain their shape when coins are inserted to prevent their falling out. This strength requirement means that a sufficiently large amount of plastic must be used to meet the specifications.
A container is therefore required which is cheap to make, reuseable and easy to use.